Effective thermal conductivity of transversely isotropic media with arbitrary oriented ellipsoidal inhomogeneities (Q2455474)

The paper deals with the homogenized thermal conductivity tensor of transversely isotropic porous media containing arbitrary oriented ellipsoidal inhomogeneities of low aspect ratio in the elastic range. A steady-state heat conduction problem is defined for a single ellipsoidal inhomogeneity by neglecting advection and adsorption effects for simplicity. The problem is not well-posed, and hence the internal consistency (i.e., existence, uniqueness and stability) of solutions is excluded, as is customary in engineering approach. The solution of the problem is presented by use of Green's function for an ellipsoidal inclusion aligned with the symmetry axis of the surrounding matrix, and for an arbitrary oriented ellipsoidal inclusion. The overall thermal conductivity tensors are found for isotropic and random distributions of ellipsoidal inclusions in a transversely isotropic matrix. Then, a two-step homogenization method, which is based on the Mori-Tanaka estimate, is developed to find the effective thermal conductivity of porous media. Two numerical applications are given for partially saturated opalinus clay and an argillite. The homogenization method is shown to account for mineralogical and morphological related parameters for the evaluation of the overall thermal conductivity. The results are validated by comparison with experimental data, which indicates satisfactory predictive capacities of the homogenization method. The paper is addressed to engineers and applied scientists in micromechanics.